Lucas, Encore

SOOOO CUTE!!!

Hawaii Sushi

Landon picked up this Local Ahi Mix from Hawaii Sushi in Market City. It was their $6 Daily Special.


This is my Snow Crab Roll ($6). Almost forgot to take the pikcha. It was ono. It was also tiny. 

Bed Frame Again

Wendell has a thing for bed frames. I promise . . . he gets all excited when he sees them out on the curb for bulk pickup. I wrote about it a year ago here. 

The other day, I saw this bed frame on my way out to run some errands. It was nearby about a block away from us. When I returned home, I walked out to the street to take a photo to send to Wendell. 

Only thing . . . our next-door neighbor came by walking his dog. So, I had to explain to him about Wendell's love of bed frames, yadda yadda yadda. Our neighbor then said that on his way back he would carry the frame back to my house for me. I didn't want to trouble him so I said that it looked light and that I could carry it myself and for him not to worry about it.

So that's how I ended up carrying this bed frame one block to my street in broad daylight. Was so shame. 

Testing

I tested out the movie mode in my Fuji camera yesterday. I rendered in 4K (I think) which is probably why it took forever to upload . . . not real sure. Kinda winging it. 

The coolest feature to me was the autofocusing while recording. You'll see at the start how amazed I am at this. With my Canon the focal plane is set before recording, and once you start recording anything outside of that plane will be blurry. 

My narration is mostly garbled and slow, except for when the screen on my camera went black and I thought the camera had shut off. I say, "Ai? What happened? What? I don't get it. Batteries? Overheating?" And then when I'm trying to figure out how to brighten the screen I start clicking my tongue. Dunno why I do that, but I always do. 



Well, that was pretty fun.

Beef Tongue

Landon really enjoyed this Beef Tongue from Mary's Mediterranean Kitchen in 99 Ranch. It was $11.50. It also came with pita bread. The pita bread looked good. The tongue grossed me out. 

Sakura Terrace

We received a gift card for Sakura Terrace for Christmas, and we finally got to use it this past weekend.

Dunno if you could tell by the photos lately, but I've been trying to use my new(ish) Fuji XT-2 camera more instead of my iPhone. 

I love the kanji for Sakura. In the character there's a tree on the left and a girl on the right who seems to be sitting under some leaves. So pretty.


This came with our meal.


Salmon Nigiri ($4.25), Hamachi ($5.25), Chu Toro ($9.50)


Chirashi Don ($24)


Unagi ($14)


Ahi Belly ($18)


Vegetable Tempura Don ($17)


Having off-and-on internet problems. Been trying to post this all day. Repair guy supposed to come tomorrow. 

Recycled Starbucks Box

Honolulu Aunty can't bear to throw away well-made boxes, and knowing that I feel the same way gave me a box like the one below to recycle. 



I wondered if painting the box would work, and it did! I was pretty surprised at how it came out.


The bottom of the box is black so I decided to go with a black theme for the top. 


I first painted the surface with Liquitex Black Gesso.


Then I brushed on some of the metallic inks that I got from Ross. 


Here's the top.


One side.


Another side.


Thanks for the box and the incentive, Aunty!

Wendell's Crab Bisque

The recipe for this dish was in this month's Hawaiian Electric newsletter and can be found here. It was ono, but a bit thick to me. Maybe bisques are supposed to be thick. Yes?

Person/Mountain/Building/Tree

This is my last painting for watercolor class. The assignment was to put a person, building, mountain and tree into one painting with one of the elements as the main focus.

Ramen-Ya

I wrote a really short story about Ramen-Ya two years ago describing my disappointment and said that I would never go back again. 

Landon, the curry connoisseur, did go there last week, however, and got the Beef Curry Rice ($9.75).  He totally loved it, and I kid you not, days later he was still raving about it. Not only was it flavorful, but DA BEEF . . . oh, da beef was so tender . . . he said.


He also liked the Mochiko Chicken ($5.95).


I tried some of this Pork Fried Rice ($8.95) which he also got. It was good!


Surprise, surprise, yah! 

Wendell's Garlic Steak

For this dish Wendell kinda followed the recipe from Cafe Delites website here. It looked (and smelled) so good that I had to sneak a bite. It was YUMMY!!!

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup garlic butter, divided

Garlic butter:

• ½ cup butter (or spread of choice), softened at room temperature
• 2 garlic cloves , minced (or 1 teaspoon garlic powder)
• 2 tablespoons fresh chopped parsley
• Salt to taste (if using unsalted butter)

For The Potatoes:

• 26 ounces baby Yukon potatoes (or 750 grams), washed (peeled or unpeeled), cut into 1-inch pieces 
• 1/4 cup onion diced
• 2 tablespoons fresh parsley finely chopped
• Salt to taste
• Cracked black pepper to taste
• 1/3 cup diced bacon cooked
• 1/3 cup scallions (or green onions/shallots), sliced

For The Steak:

• 2 pounds whole eye fillet (or ribeye) steak (or 1 kg)*, AT ROOM TEMPERATURE. Pat dry with paper towel for best results.
• Salt to taste
• Cracked black pepper to taste
• 1/4 cup cheddar cheese shredded
• 1/4 cup mozzarella cheese shredded**

Instructions

1. Preheat grill to medium-high heat. 
2. Make a batch of garlic butter. Divide in half and melt in the microwave for 20-30 seconds. Combine the potatoes and the onions in a bowl. Pour the melted garlic butter over the top; set aside.
3. Spread the remaining non-melted butter over the steak to evenly coat.

FOR WELL DONE STEAKS:

1. Slice your fillet into 2-inch thick slices (if the pieces are too small they will dry out). If you like your steak dry, cut them smaller.

FOR MEDIUM RARE STEAKS:

1. Cut your fillet into 4-inch long pieces (see above pictures or video for reference). The bigger you cut them, the more juicy the steak will be once its done. For rarer steaks, but them bigger (5 or 6 inch pieces).

TO COOK:

1. Tear four or six 15-inch (40cm) pieces of heavy duty foil and arrange on your kitchen counter or bench top. Divide steaks and potatoes among the top half of the foil sheets. Sprinkle with parsley, and season with salt and pepper
2. Fold up the sides of the foil first over the steak and potatoes, then fold up the entire bottom half of the foil over the ingredients to join the ends. Fold down to seal, pressing the seal tightly to prevent any juices from spilling out.
3. Place foil packets on the HOT grill, cover and cook for 7 minutes on one side. Flip and cook on the other side for a further 5 minutes, until potatoes are cooked through, (about 12 minutes all together). CAREFULLY open the foil packets (being careful of the escaping steam). Sprinkle the cheese over the potatoes, and loosely tent with the foil again to allow the cheese to melt through for a further 3 minutes while still on the grill.
4. Top the potatoes with the cooked bacon, garnish with the scallions (or green onions), and season with a little extra salt and pepper, if needed.

Kaheka Sushi

I bought some sushi from Kaheka Sushi yesterday. It was good!! It's located street level in the Kaheka Professional Center Building at the corner of King and Kaheka.

California Maki ($5.99) 


Sushi Bento ($11.99)

Another True Story

Do you remember how I said that I could never, ever afford to own professional-grade Winsor and Newton watercolor paints? Well, I now own 9 tubes of professional-grade Winsor and Newton watercolor paints!!

Me and Sweetie went to Fisher (Mapunapuna) yesterday. I know. I just went. But going to Fisher is kinda an obsessive thing with me right now. 

Right outside of the entrance was a shelf unit marked "Clearance", and anything marked "Clearance" is a magnet for me. There was a box full of these Winsor and Newton paints! The regular price for the tiny 1/2 oz. Series 4 (most expensive) tubes is $26.36. Crazy, yah.

All of the tubes in the box were marked with a $4 sticker. !!!!!! I wish I coulda bought more, but you know . . . retired . . . fixed income and all. Maybe I'll go back tomorrow . . . 

A True Story

I went to Fisher yesterday looking for a particular watercolor paint. A YouTube instructor had used it in a tutorial that I watched, and I thought that the color was so pretty. It was a QoR brand paint, and the color was called Quinacridone Magenta.

At Fisher the QoR display was well stocked so I was pretty confident that the color I wanted would be in stock.


Unfortunately, I was wrong. I stood there for awhile looking much like my drawing. Then I searched through the adjacent tubes for a Quinacridone Magenta that maybe might've been "misfiled". No such luck. I looked through the sample book to see if there was another color that was similar. There wasn't. And so I finally gave up and walked to where the other art supplies were. Just to look. I didn't really need anything else.


I was looking at and admiring the expensive professional-grade Winsor and Newton watercolor paints that I could never, ever afford to own when I noticed a lone tube on the shelf next to some Koi watercolor sets. I picked it up knowing that chances were slim-to-none that it would be the one that I wanted. Guess what happened next.


It was exactly the one that I wanted. NO WAY, RIGHT!!!?


A True Story.

People in a Group

This week's class project. I painted from a photo that was in the free Luxury magazine that comes in the mail. Teacher didn't have to remind me to darken the shadows this time. 

Thanks Annie!!

Annie's mom was my boss way back in the day when I was a hairdresser.  !!!!! Yup, I was a hairdresser. I became a hairdresser because I didn't want to go to college, and I had to do something, so I thought that doing hair would be fun. It provided me with a good source of income . . . I lived off my tips and saved the rest . . . but after 4 years I realized that it wasn't for me. So I moved on.

A few months ago while I was standing in line for eggs at the open market at Kaiser, Annie approached me and asked if I was Jalna. I have no idea how she even recognized me. It's been over 40 years! She get good eye!

Annie treated me to lunch yesterday at Gomatei Kahala. She had the Shoyu Ramen below. I had the Wakame Ramen. It was good . . . nice and mellow with al dente noodles just how I like them. 

Thanks for lunch, Annie. It was nice catching up with you!

I Love Theresa Caputo, But . . .

Theresa Caputo, the Long Island Medium, is coming to Honolulu! She will have two shows at the Blaisdell Concert Hall on June 12 and June 13. 

Les texted me yesterday and asked if I wanted to go. I said sure as long as I don't have to drive at night. I don't like to drive at night anymore . . . cannot see good. And, I not that good at driving even when I CAN see good. 

Unfortunately, (1) showtime is at 8:00 p.m. and (2) CHOKE EXPENSIVE.  So I told Les let's just find out where Theresa is staying and we go try stalk her. 'Cause, you know, she does da kine impromptu readings when she comes across people and gets "da feeling" and starts pursing her lips. Maybe we'll get lucky. 

Kaheka Sushi

Opens tomorrow!!  It's street level in the building where I used to work at the corner of King and Kaheka.



The owner said that he'll have ready-to-go bento and miso soup as well as sushi. I go to visit quite often so I'm excited!

Da Ultimate Grindz Hawaii

I went to a rummage/craft sale at Manoa Elementary School this past weekend. Da Ultimate Grindz Hawaii had a tent there. These are photos that I took to send to "da guys" to see if they wanted me to bring home something. Landon texted me back with a "Hell Yah!"

I'm so irritated at myself for not taking any photos of the food that I bought . . . aaaaaarrrrgggggg.  Both Landon and Wendell loooooved the brisket.  I got the pancit for myself. It was only awright. 

This is the Ultimate Combo that was on display.


Da Brisket!! When I declined a sample, the guy asked me when I was gonna start eating meat again (psychic?), and I said, "Maybe now."

Wendell's Slow Cooker Garlic Spareribs

Wendell said that this spareribs was tender and ONO. He got the recipe from The Red Gingham website here. 

Buildings in Perspective

Here is my painting for this week's class. The teacher kept telling me to darken the shadows. She might've told me that about 3 or 4 times. Each time I would add darker paint and ask if it was enough, and each time she would say no. It made me realize just how much bolder I need to be with the shadows. 

Kahai Street Kitchen

Wendell and Landon got some Kahai take out the other day.  Landon loved his Beef Wellington. He said that it lives up to all the Kahai hype. Wendell said that his Pork Cutlet was ono too.

Beef Wellington.................................................................... $14.95 
Our version of a culinary classic. Braised tender boneless short ribs with mushroom duxelle, sautéed spinach and caramelized onions, baked to perfection in puff pastry, served with a port wine demi-glace.

Pork Cutlet.............................................Wednesday Special $9.75
Tender breaded pork loin pan fried with mushroom gravy

Lucas the Spider

The cutest spider EVER. Thanks for sharing, Kevin!

Call it Grace

Do you remember the Liquitex products that I got from Ross the other day? I used the metallic inks to paint the background for these two pages. I am totally in love with it. I want to get more, but when I went back to a couple Rosses yesterday, they were already sold out. (Update: Found it at the Ward branch!)

I used a Uni-Ball white gel pen to write some of the lyrics to a song that I like called Call It Grace. 


Here are the inks. 


Here's Call It Grace by Unspoken. Looooove.

Sakura Pigma Professional Brush Pen

I found this brush pen at Fisher. It was on sale for $2.49.  I liked it so much that I went back today and bought another one. Unfortunately, I think the sale ends today, and normal price is $3.72. 



I got the fine tip. It also comes in medium and bold. 


It's the finest tipped brush pen in my collection.


I also like it because the ink is waterproof. 


I used it for the eyelashes below.


Here's a Master in action using the pen: